3.21.2011 Ride: The Soul of a Bike

A few shots from my early morning walk in downtown Fayetteville, GA.

At the bottom of this picture, in a small bank, are a set of three old concrete steps. I like how the steps and the magnificent magnolia suggests a house that's no longer there.

The pit from Melear's BBQ that recently closed. It was founded in 1957.  Part of what made Fayetteville, GA unique.

A bike from Gus: Take Two

We may be away for Spring Break, but that doesn't mean we are necessarily on vacation. It was a busy morning of trying to get Frances' affairs in order.  Unfortunately, this 92 year-old woman, who is used to being fiercely independent, is having a very difficult time keeping up with things.  The good news is that physically she is doing a bit better than when I was here about 3 weeks ago.  But, the bad news is that mentally she is not.
The good news is that it was a beautiful day in Fayetteville and Frances was up for going out to lunch.  This seemed like a good opportunity to work in my bike ride.
After I took Walter home last night, we traded the bike he brought down for another one which was a bit larger and in better shape.  Still, it had it's quirks, such as a chain that liked to slip.  There does come a point where one can find the "soul" of a machine and work with it so that there is some synchronicity between human and machine.  That was the case with this bike.  After some repeated frustrating moments of slip after slip, I seemed to find a rhythm that was to the bike's liking and where the chain didn't slip as often.  So, is the machine training the human to do as it pleases?

Lunch at the City Cafe and Bakery

Fayetteville, GA  Old Court House

I took advantage of the gorgeous day and rode for a full hour after lunch, managing to keep the skipping and slipping to a minimum.  But it will sure be nice to get back to Southern Comfort.

Today's Ride: 1hr 45mins.  19.6 miles.  75 degrees. 12mph wind.  Miles YTD: 1,460.05

Today's litter pick-up.  One piece-at-a-time campaign.